Ageing is inevitable, and as much as we want to escape, there is no way out. All organs, whether obvious or not, undergo gradual degeneration and deterioration. The brain is no exception, and memory being one of its main function also begins to decline with age. There are various factors which determine how quickly this ageing sets in and how rapidly it progresses. These are dictated by a person s lifestyle, activity levels, and overall body changes. Dementia also has a strong family history, and if you know someone who has a family history, there are some early signs that you could watch for. This will help in both empathizing with the person, as well as to help in arresting progression. Read on to know the signs that need to be watched out for.

Mood changes: Sudden changes in mood, especially going into short periods of depression without an obvious reason, is one of the first symptoms of dementia. If it is happening repeatedly, this can help identify dementia.
Personality changes: If a shy person suddenly becomes outgoing or vice versa, this could be an early indicator of dementia. They either develop or shed inhibitions, which is a new change for them.
Memory loss: Sudden short-term memory loss for a person who had a very strong memory is a definite indicator of dementia. They might clearly remember the distant events but forget small things like where to find their medicines, where things are in the kitchen or bathroom, etc. Because of this, you might see them repeating what they just did. This could be like washing a glass again, saying or asking the same thing again, etc.
The difficulty with regular tasks: Short-term memory loss causes difficulty with regular tasks like laying out the dinner table, finding regular medicines, paying utility bills, etc. There is also difficulty in learning new tasks, which further complicates things.
Feeling lost: Due to sudden memory loss and difficulty with regular tasks, they suddenly feel lost, which in turns adds to their depression.
Apathy: This also leads to a general lack of interest in things and people around them. They could have had hobbies, which no longer interest them.
Disoriented: They find it difficult to be aligned to time and space. Directions which they clearly know could seem difficult.
Not able to connect the dots: While the elderly people are generally good at telling stories and anecdotes, with dementia setting in, this becomes difficult.
These are some symptoms which can help identify if a near one is slowly developing dementia. Identifying in the early stages can help in arresting progress and extending support.

Dementia - How To Know If Someone Is Suffering From It?

Alzheimer's disease is a dynamic disease that causes loss of memory and other vital mental functions. To start with, someone with Alzheimer's disease may witness light confusion in the beginning and trouble recalling. In the long run, individuals with the disease may even overlook important individuals in their lives and experience emotional identity changes.

Dementia: Alzheimer s disease is the most widely recognised reason for dementia   a gathering of brain issues that causes the loss of intellectual and social abilities. In Alzheimer's disease, the brain cells deteriorate and die, bringing on an enduring decrease in memory and mental capacity.
Brain Cells: Despite the fact that the reasons for Alzheimer's is not yet completely comprehended, its impact on the brain is clear. Alzheimer's disease harms the brain cells. A mind influenced by Alzheimer's has fewer cells and fewer associations among surviving cells than a solid mind.
Brain Shrinkage: As more brain cells start to die, Alzheimer's prompts critical brain shrinkage. At the point when specialists inspect Alzheimer's brain tissue under the magnifying instrument, they see two sorts of irregularities that are considered to cause Alzheimer s. These are:
Plaque: These clusters of a protein called beta-amyloid may harm and crush brain cells in a few ways, meddling with cell-to-cell functioning. In spite of the fact that a definitive reason for brain cell passing in Alzheimer's is not known, the accumulation of beta-amyloid on the outside of brain cells is a prime reason.
Tangles: Brain cells rely upon an inner support and transport framework to carry the supplements and other fundamental materials through their long extensions. This framework requires the typical structure and working of a protein called tau. In Alzheimer's, strings of tau protein turn into strange tangles inside the brain cells. This may also cause the decrease of brain cells. 
Here are some more causes that can lead to this disease:

Age: Age is a most critical cause in the development of Alzheimer's disease. The probability of building up the condition increases after you reach sixty-five years of age.
Family history: The qualities you acquire from your parents can add to your danger of building up Alzheimer's infection. This may also contribute to the environmental factors which can cause this condition. In some families, a single gene creates Alzheimer s disease and the dangers of the condition being passed on are much higher.
Head injuries: Individuals who have had serious head damage have been observed to be at higher risk of building up Alzheimer's disease.
Cardiovascular diseases: Research demonstrates that few lifestyle components and conditions connected with cardiovascular disease can build the danger of Alzheimer's disease. These include smoking, obesity, diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol.


Alzheimer's Disease - Reasons That Can Lead To It!

World Alzheimer s Day is celebrated on the 21st of September each year. A number of organizations, from all over the world concentrate on raising the awareness about Alzheimer s disease and dementia. Alzheimer s disease is a very common type of dementia. It falls under the group of disorders in which mental functioning gets impaired. Life for an Alzheimer s patients is quite difficult, but by following the following tips, you can support yourself and will also help you to cope with it. 

You have to accept the changes and accept that life will continue getting difficult. Instead of trying to cover your difficulties for protection from embarrassment, you should face the fact. You also have to accept the changes in your physical abilities and adapt to skills, which are beneficial.
You should develop some ideal coping strategies. Try to be occupied and involved and respond to the challenges you face in everyday life. By practicing the coping skills you will be able to gain a sense of control in your life.
Try to identify stuff. Make a list of all the tasks which seem challenging to you and try to develop coping strategies for these tasks. Prioritize your tasks and determine whether it is really necessary to overcome certain tasks. You should also strategize solutions and come up with solutions which would suit you best.
You should set realistic goals and expectations for yourself and use the coping skills to deal with difficult tasks. In case of very challenging tasks, do not hesitate to take help.
A daily routine or plan is required for keeping a track of several tasks. A schedule reduces the amount of time you spend to figure out something, simplifying your task and also prevents mistakes.
Always approach one task at a time and take enough time to complete tasks. Do not give up on challenging tasks and take breaks to figure things out.
Always remember that you have more than a single chance to solve problems. If one chance fails, you should adopt new strategies and try again and again with better assessment.
You should identify the triggers which cause anxiety and stress. Knowing the causes will allow you to plan in advance so that you can prevent them.
Keep in mind that your family, friends, pets, will power and prayers are sources of great strength and will help you get past any obstacle.
You should accept help from others and do not hesitate or think about being dependent on others.
You should take the advice from your psychiatrist or from Alzheimer Association National Early-Stage Advisors in order to understand the challenges such as medications, management of schedules and dealing with emotional or relationship changes.

Alzheimer's - 10 Tips to Help Dementia Patients Cope with their Problem

One of the worst neurological disorders to have is dementia. It is a general term used to describe cognitive decline of the brain. It s not specific disease but denotes several brain disorders and mental illnesses. A person suffering from dementia can have severe impairment in judgment, loss of memory and thinking. Dementia is a very difficult disease not only for the patient but also for their families and caregivers. 

Some facts about dementia are as follows:

It s not a mental disorder occurring in old age but it does degenerates with age.
An estimation of 47.5 million people worldwide suffers from dementia and 60% of these people live in low and middle-income countries and according to WHO this figure is likely to increase.
Every 4 seconds a new case of dementia is reported
Dementia is a collective term to describe the many types of in people, such as 

Alzheimer s Disease: It is one of the most common type of dementia accounting for 60-80% of dementia case. People suffering from Alzheimer s have fewer nerve cells and the size of the brain shrinks.
Vascular Dementia: Another most common form of dementia occurring after a stroke.
Lewy Body Dementia: It is neurodegenerative condition that involves a protein called alpha-synuclein which changes the brain. Symptoms may be similar to Parkinson s disease.
Symptoms of dementia can range from mild to moderate to severe that includes:

Memory Loss
Disorientation meaning inability to focus or pay attention
Changes in visual perception
Impairment in reasoning and judgment
Dementia can be caused by damage to brain cells or progressive brain cell death. As a result communication between brain cells become difficult. Other symptoms include:

Stroke
Brain Tumor
Head Injury
Prion Disease
HIV Infection
Reversible Factors

There are no definite tests for dementia. Doctors and neurologists have to medical history, blood tests and CT scans to find out whether a person has dementia or not. However, the most potent evaluation comes from a set of questions that are asked to a patient suspected of having dementia. The ability to answer those questions correctly is one of the best diagnoses for dementia.
There is no specific treatment for dementia as it is not a curable disease and degenerates with time. However, medicines or drugs given for Alzheimer s can be given to people suffering from dementia.
Although results vary depending upon a person s lifestyle s and habits, doctors suggest eating healthy, exercising regularly, and stopping smoking and drinking may prevent some types of dementia.
The best treatment for dementia is to treat the person with care and love so that they don t feel neglected.
Dementia is often associated with old age but that is not always true. It is important to gain knowledge and educate others also.

Dementia - Quick Facts You Must Know About It!

Dementia is a dreaded psychological disorder in which the brain cells begin to deteriorate. It is different from regular senility. When the brain cells stop doing their work, it affects the brain function. This leads to a gradual loss of memory. At the same time, the person may also experience changes in personality as well as declining cognitive abilities, all of which are linked to the faculty of memory. Dementia usually affects senior citizens. However, it may happen to the young as well.

What are the Causes of Dementia?
Dementia may be prompted by -
  Alzheimer s Disease
  Huntington Disease, a degenerative disorder
  Vascular dementia
  Atherosclerosis
  HIV
  Multiple Sclerosis
  Pick s Disorder
  Parkinson s Disease
  Encephalitis, both viral and bacterial
  Lewy Body Disease
  Brain Tumour
  Progressive supranuclear palsy
  Chronic Subdural haematoma
  Wilson s Disease
  Neurosyphilis

Dementia in Siddha -
Siddha is an ancient and indigenous branch of medicinal science that was developed in Tamil Nadu. Siddha aims to get to the root of any ailment and eliminate it from the source instead of simply trying to eradicate the symptoms. Siddha believes that the human body primarily consists of three humours- Kapha, pitta and Vata. As long as the right balance is maintained, the human will be healthy. But if the balance goes out of whack or if the quantity of one humour exceeds the others, then that will make a person vulnerable to diseases.
When there is a Vata imbalance in the mind, a person s memory begins to fail him/her.

According to Siddha, a person who has contracted dementia will exhibit the following symptoms -
  Forgetfulness
  Difficulty with recollection and reasoning
  Confusion and disorientation
  Inability to make plans
  Impaired judgement
  Anxiety
  Depression
  Hostile behaviour
  Losing interest in everything around him/her
  Disturbed sleep
  Restlessness
  Hoarding
  Delusion or hallucinations (in advanced stages of dementia)

The approach of Siddha towards neuropsychiatry revolves around the concept of  Kayakarpam    a mode of treatment that can slow down ageing and deterioration of the brain cells. Treatment of dementia consists of -
  Skinned ginger soaked in honey
  Paddy rice mixed with ghee
  Amaranth cooked ghee, salt and pepper
  Aloe Vera
  Black nightshade

Treatment of dementia also includes  thokkanam . Medicinal oils are messaged onto certain parts of the body to activate the Varma points. This will release the  praana vayu - the force of rejuvenation. Siddha also recommends regular meditation top slow down the progression of dementia.

Allopathy has not yet come up with a cure for dementia. But, Siddha can help. Moreover, Siddha medicines are safe and can be consumed without fearing side effects.

Dementia - Getting It Treated With Siddha!

Alzheimer's disease is a neurological problem that is characterised by a cognitive decline and memory loss. It is a type of neurodegenerative dementia. The symptoms of alzheimer's disease include not being able to absorb and retain new information, lack of reasoning and judging, not being able to take on complex tasks, impaired visuospatial abilities, problems in reading, writing and speech, among many others. If a person has at least two of these symptoms in a debilitating manner, then the diagnosis can be made in favour of alzheimer's disease. The main causes of alzheimer's are shrinkage of the brain size and death of the brain cells. The immune system is also said to trigger this neurodegenerative disease. Let us find out what medical science has found so far.

1. Connections: many a times, in alzheimer's disease, the memory and behaviour of the person changes because the brain is unable to make proper neural connections which can lead to memory loss of how a person behaved and the elements that formed the basis of the patient's cognition. Apparently, the immune system behaves in the same way within the brain and blocks the connection. This happens because there is constant communication between the brain and immune system along neurological lines, which is where the disease first emanates.

2. Inflammation: the brain is prone to inflammation or swelling that is not the normal kind. This inflammation happens as a result of the activation of the infection fighting neurotransmitters and the chemical changes that happen in the brain when an infection strikes. The inflammation usually happens in the plaques or clumps which the brain tries to protect. These clumps are made up of a protein called amyloid. The immune system is responsible for creating this inflammation in the brain of the patient.

3. Pattern recognition receptors: many of these receptors work in different manners and cooperate with each other to create a response in the brain. These prrs can be found in the brain plaques, and they develop the signs of danger which further fuels the inflammation in the brain as a matter of protection.

4. Activation of cells linked with the immune system: when the prrs begin to respond, it basically activates the immune system and the cells of the same. This is the basic reaction that causes the changes in brain which then leads to the attachment of the protein to the tissue that is diseased, in which case alzheimer's disease starts. The inflammation that we had spoken about earlier basically happens in the nervous tissue.

It is important to recognise and act on the initial signs of alzheimer's disease before it progresses beyond one's control.

Can the Immune System Trigger Alzheimer's Disease

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